Mastering exit strategies is the 3rd required skill for successful covered call writing and put-selling. On November 28, 2018, Nirav wrote to me regarding a series of trades he executed and wanted to know how to categorize the position management aspect of these trades. This article will highlight the differences between “hitting a double” and […]
Portfolio Overwriting with Weekly Options
Portfolio overwriting is a covered call writing alternative strategy where out-of-the-money call options are sold against long-term buy-and-hold positions. Generally, these stocks are of a low cost-basis and generate dividend income. We want to avoid assignment to prevent the negative tax consequences of selling stocks that will result in significant capital gains. Basis of […]
Selling Cash-Secured Puts to Lower Cost basis
Selling cash-secured puts can be used to generate monthly cash flow and to buy a stock at a discount. It can also be used to lower the cost-basis of shares already owned. In November 2018, John shared with me a trade he was in with Halliburton Company (NYSE: HAL) using precisely this strategy. This article […]
Ask Alan #158 – Profit-Taking Versus Rolling In-The-Money Options Early in a Contract
Alan answers a question posed by Jim M, who asks: Alan, When our strike price moves deep in-the-money as stock price increases early in the contract how do we decide if we should close the entire position and take profits or roll the option out-and-up? As an example, I bought CRM at $133.31 on January […]
Mean Analyst Ratings (MAR)
The screening process for option-selling watchlists includes fundamental analysis, technical analysis and common-sense screens. The BCI team recently added a new screen, the mean analyst rating (MAR), to replace the Scouter Rating (risk/reward) which we had been using for years. This will add an “institutional” component to our analysis. What is MAR? An investment […]
Combining Covered Call Writing and the Stock Repair Strategy
One of our covered call writing exit strategies is converting dead money to cash profits (CDMCP). When share price is declining and under-performing the overall market, we first close the short call and then sell the stock. The cash generated from the sale of the underlying is then used to enter a new position. Another […]
Using The Ellman Calculator to Monitor “Hitting a Double” Results
One of our BCI covered call writing exit strategies is titled “hitting a double” This opportunity arises when share price declines after a covered call position is opened, short calls are bought back using our 20%/10% guidelines and then the same option is re-sold when share price rises. This article will highlight how to use […]
Analyzing a Rolling Down Trade During an Extreme Short-Term Market Decline
Exit strategy opportunities must be taken advantage of with our covered call writing and put-selling trades. When there is a significant overall market decline in the short-term, there will be losses. Our job, as option-sellers, is to mitigate those losses using our position management skill. On October 20, 2018, Alvin shared with me a series […]
When Should We Execute Our Option-Selling Trades?
The 3-required skills for covered call writing and selling cash secured puts are stock selection, option selection and position management. We can also add timing of our trades as a secondary factor in enhancing our overall returns. These considerations are different for option-selling compared to traditional buy-and-sell portfolios. This article will highlight how and why […]
Should We Add a Short Put to Our Collar Trades?
A collar trade is a covered call trade with a protective put. Jim recently wrote to me asking about the efficacy of also selling an out-of-the-money put to help pay for the cost of the protective put. This article will analyze this series of trades to assess the pros and cons of adding that fourth […]
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The New Stock Market- Algorithmic and High Speed Trading
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Options That Expire Weekly and Conventional Expiration Cycles
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Why the 3% Guideline Applies to Puts but Not to Call Options
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Earnings Pre-Announcements Explained and Categorized
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Tax Implications of Writing Covered Calls against Long-Term Holdings
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Jay Henry, Welcome to our group and welcome to opti
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Alan Ellman Henry, You will need to request approval to do
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Henry Alan, I was reading your article on selling put
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